A Demon To Help

Disclaimer: I don't own them but I like to play with them, a lot.

Summary: There's a demon that needs help and another one to offer it.

Reviews: Yes please. The reviews for this fic have been positively inspiring. There are new names on the review list! Yay! Thank you sooo much! Readers Rock but Reviewers RULE!

A/N: I actually started the next chapter of 'Resurrected' but Demon/Spike just took over the computer and wouldn't leave until this was finished. WayWard Childe says I have to go finish the other chapter now and let this story be for a couple of days. Thanks for keeping me in line, Partner!

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Late Sunday night…

Dawn knew she had to be absolutely silent. Buffy had the monitor and the teenager didn't know if the volume was on or not. Stealthily, she tiptoed down the stairs, through the kitchen and pulled the basement door open, thankful that Xander had taken the time to oil all the door hinges so none of them squeaked any more. Terrified she would misstep and alert the others that she was disobeying her mother and Mr. Giles' orders, she slipped silently down the basement stairs. She was thrilled to see that they were leaving the lights on so she could see. She paused halfway down when she got her first look at the vampire she called her friend. He was sitting on the cot with his back to the wall. His head was resting on his knees and his arms were locked around his legs.

The demon heard the human as she descended the stairs. He waited tensely until the nearly silent footsteps stopped before reaching the bottom. A familiar scent reached his nose. He should know this human. Slowly, he raised his head and lifted his golden eyes to the slender girl on the stairs. His eyes widened. This was like no other human he could remember seeing. This human had a glow about her. He tried to remember what the color was, searching through his mind for the right word. He hoped he wouldn't get into trouble for daring to think but he felt safe here. It wasn't like that place. The humans here were different. They hadn't hurt him. They'd fed him and bandaged his wrists. Triumphantly he hit upon the correct word. Green. This human girl had a green glow around her. Tiny sparks that flashed and flickered through the air surrounding her. He wondered if anyone else had seen but didn't want to dwell too much on it. It was one thing to find a single word and quite another to attempt whole thoughts. Another word sneaked its way past the block he'd put around his thinking processes. Niblet. Somehow he knew this word had something to do with the small human that was now slipping down the stairs toward his bed.

Dawn padded across the basement floor on bare feet. She looked around the spacious room and spotted the sender for the monitor in Buffy's room. Quickly, she went over and turned if off hoping that since Spike was currently silent, her sister wouldn't notice the lack of signal. This was Spike, she told herself. She'd seen his demon face lots of times. He used to sneak up and try to scare her by vamping out but after the first couple of times she would just laugh at his efforts. She'd missed him so much after the last time he'd gone looking for Drusilla. She wondered who'd done something to her friend to make him stay in his demon face all the time. She crossed the floor and picked up the tray from the chair next to Spike's bed. She slowly slid the tray onto the floor and sat down, never taking her huge blue eyes off her vampire friend.

"Spike? It's me, Dawn. I've missed you so much. They told me I couldn't come down and see you until you were better but I couldn't wait." A tear rolled down her face. Spike tilted his head curiously but otherwise didn't move from his position. She swiped at the wayward tear and tried to smile.

The smell of salt mixed with the familiar scent of the human sitting next to his bed. For reasons he couldn't understand, he felt sadden by the smell. A tiny noise sounded deep in his throat, not a growl or a whimper but a sound meant to soothe and comfort. He didn't know where the impulse came from but felt he needed to make this small female feel better.

Dawn heard Spike begin what sounded suspiciously like a purr deep in his throat. She smiled at the sound and took a deep breath. Not sure what to do, she fell back on what all thirteen year old girls did best. She told him all the gossip that she could think of that had happened since she'd seen him last.

The demon listened curiously to the young human sitting there chattering. He didn't understand a lot of what she was saying but she seemed encouraged by the sound he produced from his throat, so he continued the low steady hum. He noticed after a while that she appeared tired and he gazed at her worriedly. Her words began to slow and she opened her mouth widely several times. He struggled with his torture induced confusion until he came to the conclusion that the small female needed sleep. He moved slowly, not wanting to frighten her. He stood up and put a gentle hand on her drooping shoulder and urged her toward the cot.

Dawn realized that her talking was slowing down and she was yawning more often than speaking. She was surprised when Spike began to move and had to consciously brace herself to keep from jumping when he put his hand on her shoulder. She looked up into his golden eyes as he gave her a gentle push toward the bed. Suddenly exhausted, she acquiesced and stretched out on the thin mattress. Her dark lashes fluttered shut as he pulled his warm blanket up to cover her. She smiled as she drifted off to sleep. Demon or not this was Spike and she trusted him beyond anyone else except her mother.

The demon stood gazing down at the tiny glowy form on his bed. Since it was the middle of the night, he was not very sleepy and wanted to keep watch over his small charge. Careful to keep his chains still so they wouldn't rattle and disturb the girl, he eased over to the head of the bed and crouched down into his corner. He slowly and cautiously raised his hand so he could caress the silken dark hair spilling across the mattress. He continued the soothing noise in his throat as she slept. Hours later, still weakened from his captivity, the demon slid into sleep with his long slender fingers gently tangled in the hair of his young friend.

Giles' apartment…

The watcher waited for an answer to his hostile question. He glared at his visitor and was stunned when a beaming smile graced the pale face.

"You have been helping my William. I'm here to help you." Drusilla told him, surprisingly lucid.

"What do you mean? How can you help me?" Giles questioned suspiciously.

The beautiful vampire continued to smile at him. He'd had dealings with her before and knew her to be insane in the extreme. He'd fallen for her thrall and had given her Sire, Angelus, the information he'd needed to end the world. Fortunately for them all Spike had conspired with Buffy to stop his grandsire.

"My William has been damaged. They put something in his head. Bits of wire and plastic that hurt him. Can't hunt, can't feed, can't kill." She bared her teeth and snapped with each 'can't'. She put her hands up to her head and closed her eyes. "Poor boy. So lost and confused. The stars are screaming. The Watcher and the Key can save him. Mummy must help." She pulled her hands down and opened her icy blue eyes. "The bad soldier boys have tortured my Childe. They are dying. Two at a time until they are all gone. The doctor will be last. My beautiful boy will have her."

She took an unneeded breath and seemed to snap out of her rambling. "I am here to help you tame the demon and return my Spike to himself. Invite me in, Watcher. You are safe from me."

Giles glared at his visitor. "There is no way in Hell I will invite you into my home."

Drusilla smiled indulgently and nodded. "Yes, you will. You need me to get the answers you seek. I can reach my Spike through the confusion."

She leaned gracefully on the door frame and began to talk. Giles listened in horrified fascination to what she had to say and, when she was finished, did indeed invite her into his home.

Very early Monday morning…

Riley ran his hand through hair that he'd barely had time to comb on his way out of the door. He sighed as he tried to figure out what he was going to tell Professor Walsh. She was not going to like this newest development. He looked around at the patrol team that had called him to report that they'd found two more of their number cold and drained of their blood. He hoped like hell that it was the missing hostile doing the killing and not some new threat sneaking around killing only Initiative members. He looked up at the lightening sky and wondered again what to tell his boss.

To say she was not happy would have been a colossal understatement. She was incoherent with rage. Most of the lab techs and soldiers not specifically assigned guard duty cleared out of the immediate area, leaving Riley to bear the brunt of her dissatisfaction.

Summers house, Monday morning…

Joyce tightened the belt on her robe as she walked down the short hallway to her younger daughter's room. A brief tap on the door was all the warning she gave before turning the doorknob.

"Good morn…ing? Dawn?" She stuttered to a stop when she spied Dawn's rumpled but empty bed. "Buffy!"

The fear in her mother's voice was enough to eject Buffy from the pleasant dream she'd had. A glance at the dead silent monitor on her bedside table sent a frisson of foreboding down her spine. "Mom? What's wrong?" She asked as she bolted from her bed and snagged her robe from the foot. Picking up the small white listening device, she joined her mother in the hall.

Joyce headed for the top of the stairs. "Dawn's not in her bed." She glanced at the monitor. "Has Spike been that quiet all night?"

Buffy frowned as she followed the older woman down the stairs and through the short hall to the kitchen. "I guess so. I was asleep."

"She is sooo grounded." Joyce's rant ended in a whisper as they descended the basement stairs and saw Spike and Dawn. The vampire had fallen asleep sitting in the corner with his head on the mattress near Dawn's own dark head. His fingers were still tangled in the sable tresses. Deep-seated survival instincts warned him of the newcomers and he raised his head. Buffy pushed her way past her mother and picked up a stake she'd left next to the bottom step. Spike's golden eyes narrowed on the slayer as he moved to shield the still-sleeping girl from the imagined threat.

That female was back. The small one was in danger. All his instincts demanded that he protect her. He moved swiftly around to crouch between the bed and the threat. The female advanced with her arm raised, a pointy stick in her hand. The demon stiffened and snarled, flashing his fangs.

Joyce put her hand on Buffy's raised arm. "Stop. Look at him. He's protecting her. He thinks you're going to hurt her."

Buffy paused and reassessed Spike's posture. She gasped. "You're right. I've never seen anything like that."

The older woman tugged her elder daughter back and stepped forward, her hand extended, palm up. "Spike." She said gently. "It's ok." Over her shoulder, she glanced at Buffy. "Go get him some blood, please. I won't get too close."

The demon relaxed as the dangerous one left and the other one moved forward. The one whose scent was soothing. He eased out of his defensive stance and moved back to his corner. He put his hand back on the bed and threaded his fingers gently back through Dawn's hair.

Dawn woke up as she felt Spike's fingers running along her scalp. She smiled before opening her eyes but memory flooded back and she sat up with a gasp. Her hair caught painfully in Spike's fingers and the tug brought tears to her eyes. "Ow!"

A low cry of pain erupted from Spike as he clasped his hands around his head. He curled into himself and whimpered at the waves of electricity flooding his brain. Both females watched tensely as he rode out the pain. Finally he looked up, his tear-filled eyes locking on Joyce's gentle hazel gaze.

"Mom! I'm sorry. I just wanted to see Spike and I was talking to him and I got tired. Then he made me lay down in his bed and I didn't mean to go to sleep but…" She broke off when she realized her mother's attention was still on the shivering demon in the corner.

"Um, Mom? What's wrong?" Dawn asked nervously.

"He was protecting you. He thought Buffy was going to hurt you and he was protecting you. He's not completely gone. By the way, you are very grounded, young lady. You need to get ready for school." Joyce kept a steady gaze on Spike.

Dawn shoved the blanket down to the foot of the bed and got up. Spike stood and reached out his hand to keep her from leaving. Joyce grasped Dawn's hand and pulled her slowly out of Spike's reach. "Go get ready for school." She repeated. Dawn nodded and escaped. Spike watched her go and moved to follow her, hissing in frustration when his chains reached their limit.

"It's ok, Spike. She can come back later." She put a gentle hand on his arm and guided him back to the cot. She gently pushed him into a sitting position while she sat in the chair.

Buffy came down the stairs carrying several bags of heated blood. "Mom! Get away from him." The slayer warned. Spike turned surly eyes to her and snarled again.

"Oh, please. Like he can hurt any of us. Hand me the blood and go get ready for school. Isn't Monday your early class?" Joyce held her hand out, demanding her daughter do as she ordered.

"But Mom, he's dangerous." Buffy tried again.

"No, he isn't and you know it. Shame on you. He's defenseless against us and you can't seem to get past the fact that he's a vampire. Now, give me his blood and go back upstairs. Call Mr. Giles and tell him what happened." Joyce accepted the bags her daughter grudgingly held out.

"Well, I am a vampire slayer." Buffy grumbled.

"Not this vampire." Joyce glared at her eldest daughter. She turned back to the growling demon next to her and made a soft shushing noise in an attempt to calm him. Without looking at Buffy again, she repeated her request for the Watcher to be called. With a huff of annoyance, the Slayer whirled on her heel and stormed back up the stairs.

"Shhhh, it's ok. Here, drink this." Joyce murmured soothingly as she held out the first bag.

He cautiously took it, holding it up to his nose and sniffing it. A fang nicked a tiny hole in the plastic and he sipped the nourishment experimentally. Satisfied it wasn't wrong, he plunged both fangs in and drank it quickly. He kept his golden eyes trained on Joyce as he drained the bag. He dropped the empty and glanced hopefully at the remaining bags on her lap.

She followed his gaze and smiled slightly. She held up another bag. His eyes followed it hungrily. "Is this what you want?" His gaze flashed up to her face as she spoke. "You need to say something. Then I'll give it to you."

The demon struggled to process her soft words, a low snarl of frustration erupting when understanding occurred. He shot an accusing glare at her.

Joyce never knew a demon's eyes could be so expressive. Pain, terror and sorrow shone brightly in the golden depths. Her tender heart broke as she realized the extent of his torment. Tears rose to glaze her hazel eyes.

Spike began to pant harshly and unnecessarily. He withdrew from her and huddled next to the wall as far away as he could get and still be on the bed. He pulled his legs up and wrapped his arms around them defensively. Memories assaulted his fractured mind and he shook uncontrollably.

'She wants me to talk.' He thought in shock then quailed in fear when he realized he'd actually thought a complete sentence. A ghost of the punishment that had been given out when he'd looked as if he'd been thinking drifted across his skin and caused him to tremble even more violently. A whimper of pure panic broke free and Joyce's tears spilled at the sound.

Unknowingly, she repeated Rupert's frustrated question from the night before. "What did they do to you?"

The smell of her tears wafted through his defenses and he raised his head cautiously. A little of his fear melted away at her obvious distress. With considerable effort, he stilled some of his tremors. He searched for a word. Something, anything that would halt the salty wetness falling from her eyes. He tried to remember the feeling he'd gotten before when he'd seen her, the word that had sent him cowering in the corner with barely understood emotions. Home. That was it. Now if he could just remember how to say it. He hadn't spoken actual words in so long. He could hardly remember how to make the sound in his throat. He opened his mouth to try. The whisper was barely audible and he shrank back as soon as it escaped his lips. He waited tensely for his punishment.

"Home."

TBC